Centrifugal blowers and fans generally include an impeller or blower wheel that rotates in a predetermined direction in a housing and is driven by an electric motor. The blower wheel has curved blades that draw air in axially along the blower wheel's axis of rotation, and discharge air radially outwardly. Such blowers are used in a variety of applications, such as in heating and cooling systems, especially for automotive applications.
FIGS. 1-3 show a conventional blower assembly, generally indicated at 10, that includes a blower wheel 12 that is coupled for rotation with a shaft 14 of an electric motor 16. The blower wheel 12 is mounted in a housing 18 and when rotated, causes air to flow from inlet 19 to outlet 20 of the housing 18.
The blower assembly 10 works well for its intended purpose, but there is a need to reduce noise of the blower assembly 10 and improve the efficiency thereof.